Europe turned on the morning news it learned that the Irish government was fully guaranteeing not just the deposits but all the liabilities of six major Irish banks for a period of two years. No other government had been advised in advance, nor had the ECB, nor had the Irish taxpayers.66 It stopped the run, but it left Ireland, with a population half the size of New York City, guaranteeing 440 billion euros in bank liabilities. The losses the banks incurred would bankrupt the Irish state.
